Walk Around My Head All Night
by Cage The Elephant In The Room
Summary: Emmett would have to make a choice. And Bay would have to hold on to that chunk of hope that with time he would open his heart to the girl that should have been with him all along. Bemmett and Ebay.
1. Zero

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything affiliated with **_Switched at Birth_**.**_

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><p>She wasn't in love with him.<p>

Their relationship was too premature for declarations of everlasting love. She had already done that with Ty and she wasn't ready to jump into another giant commitment. But Daphne's newfound perspective couldn't help but shake her. And not just a little, but a hell of a lot. She acknowledged that a part of it was jealousy; Daphne was a part of Emmett, she knew things about him that she didn't. Not yet anyway. There was also a very large part of fear. Things with Emmett were easy and she felt like he really understood her. But maybe she was the consolation prize. Maybe if Daphne revealed her feelings to him, he'd jump at the chance to be with her.

Suffice it to say, Bay was having doubts about her relationship with Emmett. It had barely taken flight and already they were hitting some serious turbulence. As if the whole switched at birth situation wasn't shaky enough, there had to be a love triangle added to the catastrophic mess. It was too much for the sixteen year-old to take.

Emmett was already Daphne's rock, Daphne's best friend. To be a little canine about it, Emmett was Daphne's territory. She had been adamant about Daphne staying away from Liam, claiming that it was too weird for her, that she couldn't take it. How could Daphne accept them when she had been so cruel as to cut off her budding romance prematurely? Bay didn't realize how much it could hurt Daphne then. Karma, she decided. She was finally getting hers and it tasted like righteous pain.

Daphne was the nice one, the smart and thoughtful one. She put her own feelings aside for the sake of others. It was annoying as hell and it gave Bay a sense of satisfaction seeing how easy it was to sway Daphne, but it was also a quality that she admired in the girl whose life she should have lead.

It wasn't fair to her, to Daphne. It wasn't fair to carry on a relationship with Emmett without letting Emmett decide what he wanted. Sure, she wasn't in love with him.

But there was still an even larger part of her heart, bigger than the jealousy and much bigger than the fear, that pounded away with each breath she took. It was hope. And she desperately hoped that Emmett would choose her over her formidable contender in the battle for his heart.

_Emmett deserves so much more than me, _Bay thought to herself. _He deserves to be with Daphne. But I can't help wanting him, too. And I can't help wanting him to want me back. _

Emmett would have to make a choice. And Bay would have to hold on to that chunk of hope that with time he would open his heart to the girl that should have been with him all along.

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><p><strong>It is usual for me to write teaser pieces. They can usually stand alone if no one's interested or can be continued for a long time if people are. So, if you do want a longer continuation, I hope you'll review with what you hope to see. Thanks for reading. <strong>

**- Cage **


	2. One

_There's no doubt, you're in deep_

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><p>It's raining.<p>

The strength of the rain falls somewhere between hard and gentle. The droplets come down one by one, like they're chasing one another to the various puddles that litter the broken street. Bay watches them fall from Emmett's window, noting that there's really nothing special about the rain. Hollywood uses it to demonstrate sadness or rebirth. In literature it poses as a symbol for something deeper. It's always portrayed to mean more than just a natural occurrence. But to Bay, it's just rain. Nothing special at all.

Turning her back on the window, she shifts her attention to Emmett instead. Every time she thinks about the beautiful, if not terrible, language barrier between the two of them, an intensely bittersweet feeling washes over her. At first, it was just the coolest game of charades. Then it became more about intuition. Reading not just his hand motions, but also reading into the emotions he exuded. It wasn't about his being deaf or her being hearing. Statistics be damned. Emmett was brilliant, in so many more ways than she could have, would have, anticipated.

Emmett is reading a book. It's one she's read before given that she was the one who recommended it to him. He's somewhere in the middle of the paperback, and his expressions are so acute, portraying them in such a way that she can almost guess which part he's at. It's strange. The relationship they have, where they can just read a book in silence and avoid an awkward exchange. It's incredible.

Emmett pauses as he finishes a chapter, holding his place with his forefinger in between the pages and thumb on top of the cover. He sits up on his bed and motions for Bay to sit down next to him. She complies, and he wordlessly, as per usual, kisses her. It's quick and it's sweet, and in an odd way more satisfying than the make-out sessions of her past.

'_You have great taste. This book is fantastic,' _he signs to her. He motions to the book for emphasis and smiles, but it's unnecessary.

She happily says, "I love this book. It's one of my favorites." She adds a few signs to accompany her lips, thinking to herself as an afterthought that she ought to study a little more.

He nods in agreement. _'I can see why. Grenouille is a freak, but he's also an outcast. You can't help but feel bad for him.' _He points to the name on the back of the cover so Bay isn't lost on his comment.

"Grenouille? When I was reading it, I couldn't decide if he's really the victim or the villain. Maybe he's neither." Bay looks down to her hands, wondering if the comment was about Grenouille or if she was really talking about herself.

'_Something wrong?' _he signs to her, concern painted all over him.

"Yes. And no."

Emmett's concern morphs into confusion. He doesn't need to sign her the question on his mind; Bay already knows.

"It's about Daphne," she starts slowly, signing the other girl's name.

Emmett removes his fingers from the book and places it down on his side table. He sits up a little straighter.

_It figures, _she thinks to herself, _that he would pay more attention at the sound of her name. Sign. Damn it. _

"I'm worried that if we don't tell her the truth soon, she's going to be angry with us," Bay says, testing out his reaction. She leaves out the part about Daphne's feelings for him.

_'You think she'll be mad?'_

"Think about it for a second, Emmett. When Daphne was dating Liam, what did you think about it?" His face falls and she knows that the guilt, the same guilt she's been feeling, is hitting home with him as well. "You thought that hearing and dead people relationships couldn't work. And I didn't want them to be together, because Liam was too close. I felt like she was invading my life. I was wrong. We were wrong."

_'Did Daphne say something to you?' _

"She doesn't know about us if that's what you mean, and I don't want her to find out from anyone but us."

_'Are you sure?'_

"No," she says, shaking her head along with the lone syllable. "I don't know what exactly I should do. I know she's going to be mad, she has to be."

_'Daphne will understand.' _

"Why? I wouldn't." The truth stings a little, having to admit to her own hypocrisy hurts.

Emmett doesn't get a chance to respond, because Bay forges ahead with the second half of what needs to be said. "And, there's more. Daphne told me something a few days ago that I didn't want to tell you, because I was afraid of what you'd say. And I know you want to know what it is, but I can't tell you what she said. You'll have to hear it from her."

_'Why?' _

Unexpectedly, Bay feels as if she could just breakdown in his arms and cry all over again. "I can't tell you why, Emmett. You have to talk to Daphne."

_'Please don't cry, Bay.' _

"I'm not crying," she says, even as a tear leaks out. She quickly swipes it away. "Please, Emmett. Talk to her."

_'Okay.'_

"And promise me that if anything changes, that you won't think of me."

Emmett holds her gaze, leans in, and kisses her forehead. It's a tender gesture and it gives her another surge of hope. He says nothing. It's typical, but his hands speak nothing as well. He's promised her absolutely nothing. It's the most thoughtful, unspoken gesture she's ever witnessed.

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><p><strong>I know it's another short chapter...well longer than the first, but still kind of short, but I just wanted to get an EmmettBay scene out before writing out a couple of chapters. Again, I _really _hope that you guys will enjoy this. And if you are, I hope you review with criticisms or suggestions, any particular scene/thing you're looking forward to. Your opinions matter a lot to me.**

**Also, I would like to give a big thanks to my anonymous reviewers: **Lina, bemmettlover, **and** Ashley. **I wasn't able to reply to your reviews, so I just want you three to know that I really appreciate your comments, and I hope that if you read this, you enjoyed it. Also, thank you again to **MilaDance, Taylor310, 0appletree0, TopazCullen109, Zoey24, **and** ciaranoelle **for reviewing**.

**Thanks for reading, I hope you'll tune in next time. **

**- Cage**

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><p><strong>P.S. - I like to imagine that there's a particular theme song to every story. The one to this story, I think, is <strong>Florence + The Machine's _'Addicted to Love.' _**Check it out! :D**


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